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 FREQUENTLY
ASKED QUESTIONS
ABOUT MISSIONS
ABOUT
OUR MISSION
ABOUT
OUR MINISTRIES
ABOUT
OUR MISSIONARIES
ABOUT OUR MISSION
Is
BMW affiliated with any other organizations?
BMW
is affiliated with the Fellowship Of Missions (FOM), an organization
providing a forum for ideas-sharing among mission organizations
with similar doctrinal positions.
Does
BMW cooperate with other mission boards?
BMW
cooperates with other mission organizations that have compatible
doctrinal positions, primarily those in the FOM.
Is
BMW Baptist?
Although BMW does not have the word "baptist" in its name,
we not only hold to the fundamental doctrinal beliefs historically
held by baptists, but also to the baptist distinctives. Click
here for more information.
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ABOUT
OUR MINISTRIES
What
types of ministries does Biblical Ministries Worldwide have?
In
accordance with our purpose, the main thing we do is church-planting.
If BMW is involved with other ministries, those ministries are incidental
to, and supportive of, our church planting efforts. BMW missionaries
are or have been involved with ministries in aviation, radio, Christian
bookstores, Bible institutes, seminaries, printing and publications.
What
kinds of churches does BMW plant?
Biblical
Ministries Worldwide personnel endeavor to plant self-supporting,
self-governing, self-teaching local churches that will, in time,
reproduce themselves. The names of the churches are not critical
since different terms carry undesirable connotations in different
cultures. BMW missionaries have planted churches using the terms
Baptist, Bible, evangelical and community in the names, depending
on the country and culture. Though the churches we plant have doctrinal
statements compatible with BMW's doctrinal position, their models
of governance also vary with the culture.
How
do you open new fields?
BMW
tentatively opens a new field when a missionary receives the approval
of his sending church to spearhead a new effort. At times, a sending
church will initiate the process. At other times, a team of families
will develop a burden for a country and motivate that vision in
their churches. At other times, BMW personnel will be exposed to
areas of huge potential and look for churches and families to break
new ground.
After a tentative
decision has been made, the ground-breaking missionaries work together
with the BMW Area Director overseeing that region to research the
region. Eventually, the missionaries and the Area Director do a
survey trip to determine the optimal area/city for initial location.
When three missionary units (single, couple or family) are committed
to serve on the initial team, the field is considered "open."
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ABOUT
OUR MISSIONARIES
What
factors are considered in placing the missionary on a field?
During
the Candidate Orientation process, BMW's administration evaluates
a prospective missionary in order to make a recommendation about
his or her initial placement on the field. In doing so, BMW examines
the following:
- Previous
education and training
- Previous
ministry experience
- Burden of
a missionary for a certain field
- Biblical
and theological knowledge
- Personality,
temperament, personal values and leadership gifts
- Language
learning skills
- Compatibility
of the above with the existing team on the field
Who
is involved in the decision about missionary deployment or re-deployment?
In
a multitude of counselors there is safety (Proverbs 11:14). BMW
exists to help local churches accomplish their vision for missions.
In this role, BMW attempts to discern God's will by prayerfully
building consensus between a sending church, the prospective missionary,
the team leadership out on the field, and BMW's administration.
What
is the local church's involvement in sending out missionaries?
BMW
believes that, according to Acts 13:1-3, the Holy Spirit of God
sends out qualified servant-leaders from local churches to plant
new churches in other lands. God's Spirit gives witness of this
calling both to the missionary and the leadership of his or her
church. In recognizing how God wants to use the missionary, the
church then "releases" him or her to fulfill that ministry.
Modern mission
organizations like BMW endeavor to help churches carefully and intelligently
release their people for cross-cultural ministry and service their
needs while on the field.
How
do you determine the level of support for a missionary?
The
support schedule of a missionary is determined by leadership out
on the field based on the cost of living there, tax obligations,
insurance, ministry expenses, retirement and administrative service
fees. BMW then sets a tentative support amount for singles, for
couples and for families. Missionaries may request a variation from
the support level for specified reasons.
How
does BMW cover the cost of providing administrative services for
missionaries?
The
support schedule of missionaries includes a line item to help subsidize
the over-all cost of providing the ministries of the International
Office. Therefore, the churches that support us for all other areas
of our ministry also contribute toward these services as well.
Who
directs and oversees the activities of the missionary on the field?
One
of BMW's core values is teamwork. We do not believe in "Lone
Rangers" who simply do their own thing. Where possible, each
missionary is part of a team under the leadership of a team leader
or field leader. Team and field leaders help the missionary set
goals, develop strategies, work effectively and evaluate progress
periodically.
How
is the missionary accountable to BMW and to the sending church?
BMW
asks each missionary to conduct periodic evaluations with his or
her team or field leader. Copies of these evaluations are then sent
electronically to BMW's international office. A copy of the annual
evaluation is forwarded on to the missionary's sending church. BMW
also encourages the leadership of the sending church to visit the
field periodically.
How
much education is required of missionaries?
BMW
believes that the local church can be a sufficient training ground
for developing a person's head, heart and hands for ministry. Also,
an increasing number of missionaries are "second-career clergy,"
men and women who worked in the marketplace and learned the Bible
and theology through self-study and years of teaching in their church.
Therefore, BMW
does not require a prospective missionary to have a formal Bible
college or seminary degree, but relies on the recommendation of
the sending church and does extensive testing during the Candidate
Orientation process. At times, applicants are referred back to their
churches for consultation and further training or experience.
What
skills are most important for a missionary to have?
BMW
is looking for people with ministry and inter-personal skills developed
by experience in ministry. We consider sixteen skills to be of critical
importance in being a missionary today, and are looking for churches
to develop these skills in the people they are sending overseas.
They are:
- Discipleship
- Communication
- Evangelism
- Time Management
- Exegetical
Skills
- Finances
(personal and church)
- People skills
- Language
learning skills
- Counseling
- Cultural
awareness and sensitivity
- Administration
- Computer
skills
- Strategic
planning
- Conflict
resolution
- Writing skills
- Teamwork
What
is BMW's view on the priority of the family in ministry?
BMW
believes that ministry should not destroy the family, and the family
should not destroy ministry. Many missionaries will tell you that
children can be a vital part of outreach and ministry. "Kids
come along" is a better motto than "kids come first."
We believe in KMs, not MKs - Kid Ministers, not just missionary
kids!
What
methods are used to educate missionary children on the field?
BMW
has no mission schools for its children. Some parents use national
(public) schools, some use private or Christian schools if they
are available, and some home-school their children. There are advantages
and disadvantages to each option, and families are encouraged to
prayerfully consider their options.
How
does BMW keep missionaries safe and handle emergencies?
Each
BMW field should have an "emergency management plan" that
they are updating periodically. The plan recites possible dangers
that missionaries face on that field, from natural disasters to
crime, to disease and famine, to social upheaval and armed conflict
to terrorism. All field plans are overseen by BMW's Emergency Management
Team Coordinator who also stays updated on worldwide news and US
State Department bulletins. Crises are handled by the EMTC who coordinates
activity on the field, in the office and with the press.
How
can single adults serve on the field?
Single
adults can "serve the Lord without distraction" as the
Apostle Paul did (1 Corinthians 7:8, 35). They can have enormous
mobility and flexibility to meet needs unlike those who are married
or have children. BMW has single men and women who are intensely
involved in evangelism, discipleship, youth work and leadership
development.
How
can retirees serve on the field?
They
are called "Finishers" - those who are finishing their
race well. Many who transition from a career to missions are having
the time of their life. But increasingly, a new breed of Christian
business-person is taking retirement early and heading "across
the pond" to do cross-cultural ministry. Many are teaching,
others are filling in for missionaries on leave in the US, but some
blend right in with the culture and begin doing evangelism and discipleship.
How
do Christians determine if God wants them to serve in cross-cultural
church planting?
God
expresses far more interest in what we are than in
what we do or where we go. Hence, almost all
of what we need to know about "God's will for us" - instruction
about what we should be - is found in the Scriptures. Finding
out God's will concerning what we should do and where we
should go seems to be more difficult. How does God communicate
with us?
- Primarily,
God communicates with us through His Word (Romans 10:17), and
through His Spirit (Romans 8:14-16 - which is always in accord
with His Word).
- Secondarily,
God communicates through people under the influence of His Word
and His Spirit (Acts 13:1-3) and through circumstances that open
our hearts to His Word and His Spirit (Romans 8:28-29). More than
80% of new missionaries are going to the field because they know
someone already working there and because they have visited and
seen the work firsthand.
When we look
at Abraham, Moses or Paul, we see that faith and obedience is often
based on incomplete communication. God gives direction and promises,
but doesn't tell the whole story. What we then realize is that if
we walk in prayer-filled holiness and intimacy with Him, obeying
what we already know is God's will - being what we should be
- He will lead us through our yielded desires to do what He wants
us to do, wittingly or unwittingly.
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